Chocolate Notes: Haskap & Blueberry 72% Öko Caribe inclusion bar

“Chocolate Notes” is a series that explores the process of making chocolate and how Chocolat Voyageur founder and chocolate maker, Dominique Chartrand, comes up with her unique creations.

In our previous post, we learned about the Semuliki, Uganda 69% Tomato Basil inclusion bar.  In this episode we take a deep dive into Dominique’s Haskap and Blueberry inclusion bar!

Haskap & Blueberry 72% Öko Caribe inclusion bar

Tell us a little about your Haskap Blueberry inclusion bar and the challenges you faced in creating it?

Dominique Chartrand “This second inclusion was dedicated to the bountiful harvests of berries in New Brunswick. As both blueberries and Haskaps are grown in our province the inclusion was an easy decision to make. My challenge was finding the right cacao to pair with the berries.” 

This isn’t the first time that you have combined blueberries and dark chocolate. Can you tell us about some of your other creations?

Dominique Chartrand “Since the inception of my company, I have been working with blueberries in my chocolate. The first creation was my blueberry and maple truffle, and then later on, chocolate bark with blueberries and haskap.”

Haskap berries are a little unusual.  How did you discover them?

Dominique Chartrand “It was my first summer in New Brunswick. I bought some fresh Haskap berries at the St-Martin’s Farmers Market in 2019. I had heard of them before, but at that time, had never seen or tasted them. My husband and I enjoyed eating these fresh and tart berries. They grow well in New Brunswick, and I thought they would be a great accompaniment to my chocolate, especially when combined with the sweetness of the blueberry." 

Fresh picked haskap berries

Tell us about how your paired the haskap and blueberries with your cacao.

Dominique Chartrand “When I started to create this bar, I was torn between two of my cacao origins: Vietnam, Dak Lak and Dominican Republic,Oko Caribe.  Both origins have notes of fruit and pair well with both inclusions as tasted when making my chocolate bark.  The Vietnamese cacao from Dak Lak has fruit notes of pomegranate, ground cherries and cranberries with notes of tobacco. The Dominican Republic cacao from Oko Caribe has fruit notes that include dark cherries and raisins and is sweeter which is  a good compliment to the strong flavours of the tart haskap and sweet blueberry. In the end I chose to use the 72% Dominican Republic, Oko Caribe.”

Cacao has been in the media lately, due to crop failures and rising prices.  How is this affecting Chocolat Voyageur?

Dominique Chartrand “Cacao prices are very high and I will soon run out of the Dominican Republic cacao beans.  There are difficult decisions to make.  Instead of purchasing a new batch, I will start using the Vietnam Cacao, Dak Lak. So in the meantime I will enjoy making this inclusion with this original bean and then I switch to using the Vietnam cacao. 

The Vietnamese cacao from Dak Lak has fruit notes of pomegranate, ground cherries and cranberries with notes of tobacco. As I transition to this bean,  I may have to adjust the concentration of fruit in this bar. This is part of the fun and difficulty of working with mother nature's bounty. As the climate and weather changes and we face a lack of crops, my vision for my chocolate making will evolve and change to continue to be inspired by nature and this beautiful harvest.”

If you would like to lean more about founder and chocolate maker, Dominque Chartrand, visit our About Us page.

Dominique sorts the cacao beans to remove any imperfect beans